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Jacks pack is the sum of our fears
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-2001-10-05-0110040438-story.html Jack is back with a vengeance and a posse. The demented clown who took over Universal Studios during last year's Halloween season, has returned to the theme park and brought along a few of his closest friends. "Jack has assembled the most intense, scary group of scaractures you can imagine to make sure we have a blast at this year's event," says Michael Roddy, manager of show concepts at Universal Studios. "Everything we learned from last year we took and multiplied by 10. So if you were scared last year, all bets are off this year. "We put all our ideas into Jack's box and he mixed it up and here it comes." Universal's Halloween Horror Nights XI, "No More Clowning Around," opens tonight and runs for 19 select evenings through Nov. 3. This year's event will feature fan favorites such as the "Festival of the Dead" parade, "undead" creatures lurking around every corner and, of course, Jack. "Jack demanded that he had to come back this year, and we didn't want to argue with him," Roddy says. "When a clown tells you there is no more clowning around, you take him seriously." The Universal design team, affectionately called the "scream team," has created five new haunted mazes, including "Run," a fast-paced, game show-like haunted house. Visitors will be forced to run through hallways with padded walls and chain-link fencing to escape the gameskeepers. Other new haunted mazes include: "The Mummy Returns: The Curse Continues." "Pitch Black." "Scary Tales." "Superstitions." "We just want to give patrons more than they are expecting," Roddy says. "However, we never worry about trying to outdo ourselves. If you try to top yourself, you repeat yourself. Instead of doing that, we just ask what would be fun and scary." Also new to this year's event is "Boogeymen," a compilation film featuring snippets of classic horror movies, and a new "Bill and Ted's Excellent Halloween Adventure," complete with parodies of famous icons in the entertainment industry. Since its inception 11 years ago, Halloween Horror Nights has become an Orlando tradition for frightful fun. "It's part of our history because it's part of the history within the Universal film company," Roddy says. "Universal created what horror is with characters like Dracula and Frankenstein. We created what people think of as haunted houses. It's natural for us to take that history and incorporate new ideas with a nod to the classics." During this year's event, which is expected to attract more than 46,000 people on any given night, the Orlando Police Department is ordering officers to work security on an overtime basis. The policemen usually take the off-duty security jobs on a volunteer basis. This year, the department is stretched to the limit what with other security demands due to the terrorist attacks on America. Universal will search guests' bags, and, as usual, no one other than the scaracters will be allowed to wear costumes in the park. Roddy assures, "The root of Halloween is that it's a party, like a roller-coaster ride. It's an adrenaline rush and it will be scary fun. "You don't have to go door to door for Halloween," he added. "You stand there, and we come to you -- we provide the tricks and the treats."Category:Halloween Horror Nights article Category:Halloween Horror Nights XI